Pike Kilt Lifter Scotch Style Ale
Pike arrived recently in the Tampa Bay area. I’d never had any of their beers but I thought I should give them a shot–I’m glad I did. Scotch Ales are an interesting breed, similar to brown ales and porters. This example has a nutty, chocolate aroma and thin brown color. It has a slightly bitter bite with sharp (but quickly diminishing) carbonation, and dries up quickly with peat malt–something unique to scotch ales. The malt gives a smokey, woody character that’s mild and interesting. I’m not a scotch drinker so I can’t say how much these beers actually taste like scotch, but I doubt they do much at all. This is more along the lines of an earthy spirit like Drambuie. And like that spirit this beer needs to be appreciated on its own to be fully understood.
I recommend Scotch Ales for fans of dry stouts and porters, since they are generally a bit stronger than brown ales. This is a great beer, and I can’t wait to try more from Pike Brewery.
05 Jul 2010, 12:08 pm
Nice. Picked up a bottle of the Scotch and their IPA at Total Wine on Saturday. $3.50 a bottle is a great deal and I sampled the Scotch in the store…good stuff for the small sample I got from them.
06 Jul 2010, 12:35 pm
[...] Evan said in his review of the Scotch Ale by Pike, I noticed these beers hitting the store this weekend as well and couldn’t pass up the price. [...]